By Nicole Levison

Admittedly, we live in a glossy society that often honors convenience above all else. Fast food, quick weight-loss gimmicks, plastic surgery instead of long-term lifestyle changes—you name it. Our society frequently deems speed and ease to be more important than quality. But sometimes ease and speed unite with quality, and that can be music to a caregiver’s ears!

More Than Just Handy

If you add up the time and take into account the stress involved with driving, transporting your care recipient (which can be a major consideration in certain situations), standing in lines, being at the mercy of others’ schedules, and often being a caregiver that also has job and other family responsibilities—well, home-delivery services can be the answer. Having a professional come to your door to help you with daily tasks can be a huge stress reducer. And most times, these trained professionals can do a better job than you can for a fraction of the cost of your time.

Types of Services

Whether the one you care for lives with you or you provide care from afar, there are many home services available—from home health-care and respite services to local launderers, housekeepers, transportation providers, personal trainers, rehabilitation specialists, and gardeners. Even the United States Postal Service will deliver an individual’s mail right to his/her door if a disability hinders the person from making the trek to the mailbox.

Family Caregiver Alliance provides all sorts of practical tips, resources, and guidelines for selecting community-care services. The FCA outlines four areas to assess when considering any service for your charge:

• Personal care (dressing and eating)
• Emotional requirements (activities and social interaction)
• Domestic duties (cooking, cleaning, home maintenance)
• Health care needs (medication management, doctor appointments)

Community Support

There are various community resources available to both help and identify the services that best suit your care recipient:

• Volunteers.
  This can be family, friends, or religious organizations that assist with informal care. Do not hesitate to get creative, and contact university or training programs where providing help could also benefit the student as school credit.
  
• Referrals.
  Local resources such as senior centers and community health programs can often refer appropriate services.
  
• Case managers.
  A case manager can assess, execute, and supervise an individual care plan. Oftentimes, a person is eligible for this service through funding from federal, state, or county programs. Hospitals and social-service agencies can also refer or provide this service. This person can help wade through the process of finding and selecting suitable service providers.
  
• Transportation services.
  By law, this service is available to anyone who cannot use standard public transportation. ProjectAction.org can provide information on local para-transit services.
  
• Respite services.
  This includes home care (which runs the gamut from medical services to non-medical services like companionship and housekeeping) and adult day care.
  
• Hospice services.
  Assistance that allows terminally ill patients to remain at home. These professionals provide medical and emotional support to the patient and caregiver(s).
  
• Support groups. 
  A compassionate outlet for friends and family, as well as the person who is ill, and they are an excellent source of information and encouragement. There are scores of support groups available online, as well as within local communities.

You can start by researching through your local phone directory or searching online based on your area and the service of interest (www.Google.com is my favorite search engine). Also, another option is to consult with experts to determine the home services that fit your loved one’s life. Here are a few resources you may find useful:

• Visiting Nurse Associations of America For more than 100 years, VNAs have provided comprehensive home health care.
  
• National Association for Home Care and Hospice Search their database of more than 20,000 home-care and hospice agencies.
  
• American Association for Homecare Assists in finding home-care providers.
  
• Family Care America This particular source provides checklists to calculate your caregiving needs.
  
• Home Instead Supplies non-medical companionship and help services to seniors.

If you can avoid the frustration and worry of taking off time from work to assist Dad with mundane duties, could home care a couple times a week be the solution? You have enough to think about—take care of you and yours by letting qualified pros take care of the routine responsibilities. Time is worth money and quality of life is worth every cent.

And beyond home services, don’t forget to contemplate the option of having goods delivered! This article is brought to you by one who absolutely takes advantage of and recommends these modern-day aids.